Fulham v Man City: Champions eagerly awaiting Cottage visit

Man City will be thankful that their difficult week-and-a-half is scheduled to end at Craven Cottage -they haven’t lost here since 2005.

Their bad results culminated in elimination from the Capital One Cup at Aston Villa’s hands and they travel to west London in desperate need of a win. The only outcome that will suffice for Roberto Mancini’s men can be backed at a very generous 4/5.

City have scored eight times in their past three visits to Fulham, with their Argentinean contingent particularly enjoying themselves.

Sergio Aguero was rested for the cup defeat to Villa with this game in mind and the striker netted twice in last season’s 2-2 draw here. Carlos Tevez has bagged three in as many visits here in a City shirt and even Pablo Zabaleta has helped himself to a goal at the Cottage.

Aguero is the 4/1 favourite to break the deadlock in this one with Tevez a close second at 9/2, whereas Zabaleta is a 12/1 shot to add to his five City goals at any point in the clash.

The consummate ease with which City find the back of the net here makes the price of 15/8 that they’ll win the game with three or more goals scored a tempting prospect.

Martin Jol’s side, however, have made a strong start to the campaign and have been merciless in front of their own fans. The eight goals scored and none conceded in just two outings helps explain City’s price, but they are yet to face a side of Premier League champions’ calibre.

The draw, at 5/2, is their most realistic hope of a result and is certainly something they would take if it was offered now. The Fulham win or draw with more than three goals scored in the match is a good option for punters looking to get behind the underdog, given that City have netted 17 goals in eight competitive games this term.

It’s too difficult to imagine Fulham keeping a clean sheet, in spite of their strong home record and, as history suggests, there is likely to be more than three instances of a keeper picking the ball out of his net here. This interesting alternative bet is available at 3/1.

All odds and markets accurate as of publication’s time and date